A BROMSGROVE ITU nurse whose car was stolen, along with the glasses she used for work, is the face of Specsavers’ new national TV advert which premieres tomorrow.
Sarah Banks’ story hit the headlines in the Standard and other papers back in April when, after returning to her Catshill home from a gruelling 14-hour shift on the frontline, her £30,000 white Golf GTI perfomance was taken from her driveway.
The thieves had burgled her house and taken her smart pulse key, along with a burgundy large cross-body Radley pocket bag which had her glasses in.
Specsavers on Bromsgrove High Street helped Sarah with some replacement specs and, as her story captured the company’s imagination, bosses decided she should feature in the new national TV advert.
The ‘We Were There’ ad will be shown for the first time on ITV1 tonight during Alan Carr’s Epic Gameshow.
It tells the story of store colleagues and some of their customers during lockdown when their doors were closed apart from offering urgent and essential care.
Sarah is a liver transplant co-ordinator at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham, who was redeployed during the pandemic to work in ITU.
On the support Sarah received from Specsavers and her local community she said: “It’s been incredibly heart-warming to receive so much support from total strangers.
“This is such a difficult time for anyone on the front line in the NHS and beyond, and being burgled is a horrible experience, so it has meant a lot that people have wanted to help.
“I was quite surprised when Specsavers asked me to be part of its next TV advert but it’s great to be involved and is definitely a story to tell some of my patients on the ward.”
Specsavers Bromsgrove store director, Mark Gibson adds: ‘We were so proud to have helped Sarah and been able to give back to a fellow key worker.
“It’s fabulous that she will be featured in the new advert.”
Specsavers’ teams are classed as key workers to provide urgent and essential eye care to those who need it.
This includes supporting other key workers who couldn’t function without their help and people who would come to harm without their health expertise, especially where the usual hospital services and NHS facilities are being prioritised for the fight against COVID-19.
Customers with urgent concerns can use a new RemoteCare service, which allows video consultations by visiting Specsavers’ website.
Glasses and contact lenses can also be purchased online for customers with a current prescription and there is also an online ‘Ask the Expert’ group on Specsavers’ Facebook page where a team of expert optometrists and audiologists address questions people have about their sight or hearing while stores are open for urgent and essential appointments only.
